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RonanMcNally-DrealDeal:“preparation wasn't ideal,we did fancy him but my horses weren't 100% over Christmas and had a week off.Frost at home, missed valuable work so he hasn't really galloped.Hasn't been eating either, his coat hasn't been great; Denis thought he needed the run.”
“He will probably go for the Supreme, but he will be entered in the Ballymore as well."
The Gordon Elliott-trained Envoi Allen kept up his perfect career record with victory in Sunday's Grade Three Sky Bet Killiney Novice Chase at Punchestown.
Last season’s Gold Cup runner-up Santini is only “50-50” to run in the Paddy Power-sponsored Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham on Saturday.
Ben Pauling believes Le Breuil is tailor-made to tackle the cross country fences at Cheltenham this March when the nine year old goes in search of a second victory at The Festival.
Murphy says time is right for Itchy Feet's Cleeve clash with Paisley Park
Itchy Feet will present a fresh challenge to Paisley Park in Saturday's Cleeve Hurdle with Olly Murphy hopeful it is "the right time" to take on Emma Lavelle's staying superstar.
A Grade 1-winning novice chaser last season, Itchy Feet has failed to get his head in front since his Scilly Isles success at Sandown despite a series of consistent efforts this term, leaving Murphy hoping a change in discipline and trip can spark extra improvement.
He is the general 9-2 second favourite for the Paddy Power-sponsored Cleeve behind Paisley Park, the 2019 Stayers' Hurdle winner, who has bounced back from a heart irregularity at last season's festival in great style, most recently with a last-gasp victory in the Long Walk Hurdle.
Paisley Park is odds-on to win a third consecutive Cleeve, but Murphy is looking forward to a crack at the standard bearer of the stayers' division.
Murphy said: "The Cleeve Hurdle is the plan and he seems in good form. He's had a few little issues this year, but hopefully tackling hurdles again and stepping him up in trip will bring about that little bit of improvement. Hopefully he'll go and run a good race.
"Paisley Park is going to be extremely hard to beat, but if he ran with encouragement and was placed we'd be delighted.
"He's in good form, the horses are flying and he'll certainly be taking on Paisley Park at the right time, if he was ever going to have a chance of being competitive."
Although Itchy Feet's second to Dashel Drasher at Ascot last month has been well advertised by the winner, Murphy felt he has lacked the fluency of last season and believes the Cleeve, described as something of a "confidence-building exercise", could be the ideal race for Itchy Feet.
Murphy said: "He hasn't done a lot wrong but he just hasn't gone through his races with enough fluency this year. I know he burst a blood vessel on his last run at Ascot.
"This is very much a confidence-building exercise more than anything, but he's got a lot of ability and the step up to three miles is going to suit him well."
Prior to his unseat at last season's Cheltenham Festival, Itchy Feet was firmly on an upward trajectory, with Grade 1 success following a fine effort to finish third in the 2019 Supreme Novices' Hurdle.
A stablemate following a similar trajectory was Brewin'upastorm, who also failed to complete over fences at Cheltenham last season and was brought back over hurdles successfully by Murphy at Taunton last weekend – a trick the trainer hopes will work again.
He said: "He's a horse who certainly needs to get his confidence back. Ever since Aintree he's never really jumped with any fluency and hasn't looked the most natural, which he did last year.
"In some ways it's a little bit like Brewin'upastorm, who had a nasty unseat at Cheltenham in the Arkle and came back over hurdles at the weekend and looked like a different horse. This lad may be the same, he got a fright at Cheltenham as well and maybe it's just taking him a few runs to get back to his old self."
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